Searcy man pleads guilty to killing grandmother SEARCY (AP) — A Searcy man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in the shooting death of his grandmother. The Daily Citizen reported Grant Ellis Crawford, 25, was sentenced after entering the plea Monday in the Jan. 13 shooting of 65-year-old Rachel Maples. Maples died Jan. 18 at a Little Rock hospital. Crawford said the shooting was an accident — but acknowledged that prosecutors had enough ev...

College meets fundraising goal FAYETTEVILLE (AP) — An Arkansas university has announced it has raised more than $100 million in private gift support for the fourth year in a row. The University of Arkansas at Fayetteville announced Monday that it's raised $113.3 million in fiscal year 2014. The amount surpasses the school's goal of $108 million. The private gift support includes cash, planned gifts and new pledges received from July 2013 through June of this year. About 30 ...

Arkansas starts fiscal year below forecast LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Sluggish corporate income and sales tax collections pushed Arkansas' revenue below forecast and below the same month in 2013 as it started its fiscal year in July, state finance officials said Monday. The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration said the state's net available revenue in July totaled $403.1 million, which was $7.1 million below the same month last year and $9.8 million lower than expected. The state'...

Professor flies kites for research FAYETTEVILLE (AP) — An Arkansas agriculture professor is flying kites to snap aerial photos of soybean fields after a federal agency ruled he couldn't use remote-controlled aircraft to capture the images. University of Arkansas Professor Larry Purcell is using kites to get around the Federal Aviation Administration's regulations, the Southwest Times Record reported (http://bit.ly/1ueIiXu ). His research involves developing plants that can bett...

Greene County Jail to be operational this month PARAGOULD (AP) — The project manager of the new Greene County Jail says he expects it to be operational this month. The Paragould Daily Press reported the new jail is set to house nearly 500 inmates. Project manager Dave Tierney says he expects the county sheriff will receive the jail's keys in a few days. He says while the construction has been behind schedule, they've built the facility under budget. The jail had its official ribbon cutting ...

Wal-Mart's website to personalize shopping NEW YORK (AP) — Wal-Mart, in its latest bid to compete with nemesis Amazon.com, is rebuilding its website to further personalize the online shopping experience of each customer. Wal-Mart is rolling out a feature that will enable its website to show shoppers more products that they may like, based on previous purchases. It will also customize Wal-Mart's home page for each shopper based on the customer's location, local weather and the customer'...

Delegation supports House immigration bill LITTLE ROCK (AP) — All of Arkansas' U.S. House delegation voted for Republican-backed legislation that would send migrant youths home without hearings. The legislation could lead to the deportation of more than a half-million immigrants who were granted temporary work permits by President Barack Obama's administration under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. However, the legislation is unlikely to pass the Democratic-...

2 Independence County inmates recaptured BATESVILLE (AP) — Independence County authorities say two inmates who walked away from the Independence County Recycling Center have been recaptured. A sheriff's dispatcher said Saturday that 21-year-old Kyle McTigue and 28-year-old Michael Bryant are back in custody but that she had no other details. Authorities had said the two were being held on misdemeanor charges and were working off fines by working at the recycling center in Batesville ...

ATF agent arrested for driving while intoxicated LITTLE ROCK (AP) — A federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent in Arkansas has been charged with driving while intoxicated while driving a government-owned vehicle. An Arkansas State Police trooper arrested 37-year-old John Norris on July 25 in Sherwood on charges of DWI, refusing to submit to alcohol testing, driving the wrong way on a one-way road and driving with a defective taillight. Little Rock ATF field office he...

Woman admits setting fires at LR apartment complex LITTLE ROCK (AP) — A Little Rock woman has pleaded guilty to two arson charges in connection with fires that were set at a Little Rock apartment complex between February and June 2013 and resulted in injuries to two firefighters. Lacey Rae Moore entered the pleas Friday in federal court in Little Rock as part of a plea bargain in which prosecutors dropped six other charges and said they would recommend a 12-year prison sentence. A sentencing d...

Counterfeit bills quickly changing hands in Conway CONWAY (AP) — Merchants and shoppers have been encouraged to examine their money after a recent surge of counterfeit bill circulation in central Arkansas. The Log Cabin Democrat reported many counterfeit bills have changed hands and been passed successfully in Conway throughout the past few days. A Conway detective says fake bills are fairly easy to spot through close examination. He says most of the counterfeit money has been printed on offic...

Baxter County woman, 33, found dead in home MOUNTAIN HOME (AP) — Baxter County Sheriff John Montgomery says a 33-year-old woman has been found dead in her home. Montgomery says in a news release Shannon Elaine Drewry was found about 11 a.m. Friday by a member of the household who had returned to the home south of Mountain Home. Montgomery says Drewry was later pronounced dead at the scene by the coroner. A suspected cause of death was not released and the woman's body was sent to the st...

Arkansas details changes to Medicaid expansion LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Many participants in Arkansas' compromise Medicaid expansion would be required to contribute monthly to health savings accounts and would face new limits on transportation for non-emergency services under proposals the state detailed Friday. The Department of Human Services released its proposed changes to the state's "private option," which was created last year as an alternative to expanding Medicaid under the federal heal...

Officials suggest south bypass of Light LIGHT (AP) — Arkansas highway officials are suggesting that road crews build a bypass around the south side of Light in Greene County rather than improve U.S. 412 through the center of town. The state Highway and Transportation Department said it reviewed potential bypasses to the north and the south, along with a wider route through town, and decided going around Light to the south is the better option. Going through town would force many res...

Police arrest 2 men on drug charges SEARCY (AP) — Police say they've arrested two Arkansas men on several felony charges, including possession of drugs and firearms. The Daily Citizen reported Jonathan Blaine Spivey, 22, was arrested Wednesday during a traffic stop in White County. Police say they then learned Spivey's driver's license was suspended and searched his vehicle. They say they found methamphetamine and a semi-automatic handgun. Spivey faces two drug charges and one d...

Driver charged for illegal transport TEXARKANA, Ark. (AP) — Federal authorities have charged a Guatemalan man arrested in Arkansas with transporting people who are in the country without legal permission. The Texarkana Gazette reported Isaias Elias-Pelico was transporting at least seven passengers when he was pulled over July 24. Court documents state Elias-Pelico presented a fake driver's license to a trooper. The officer contacted the Department of Homeland Security. Elias-Peli...

County officials uphold librarian firing YELLVILLE (AP) — Marion County officials are standing behind a decision to fire a librarian accused of throwing booklets about the Freedom of Information Act at board members. The Baxter Bulletin reported Thursday that quorum court members upheld the county library board's June termination of Anita Paulson. Paulson says the board violated the law when it didn't provide proper public notice before a vote. Board members say Paulson threw booklet...

Pro-alcohol petition ends in 2 counties LITTLE ROCK (AP) — A group advocating alcohol sales in dry Arkansas counties says it hasn't gathered sufficient support in Faulkner and Craighead counties. Our Community, Our Dollars said on Thursday it will solely focus on Saline County. It says it has collected enough signatures there to put the issue on the November ballot. The organization has pushed to allow alcohol sales in all three counties. The group says it failed to collect signatur...

Cities to answer state's want ad for new prison LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Cities and counties throughout Arkansas are deciding whether to contend for a proposed $100 million maximum-security prison, which would bring to town hundreds of new jobs but also some of the state's most difficult inmates. The Arkansas Department of Correction has given communities until Oct. 24 to submit paperwork if they want to host the new prison, which officials say is needed to accommodate the fast-growing inmate pop...

Beebe: No special election for state Senate seat LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Gov. Mike Beebe won't call a special election to fill the state Senate seat of a lawmaker stepping down to take a lobbying job with the University of Arkansas system, the governor's office announced Thursday. Beebe spokesman Matt DeCample cited the potential cost and timeline for a special election to replace Republican Sen. Johnny Key, who is stepping down effective Thursday to begin work as the UA system's associate vice p...